


City of the Masked : A Dance with Death

by aefiltering



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dance, Angst, Being Chased, Bickering, Clothes stay on there’s just some frisky stuff, Dancer AU, Dancer Hwang Hyunjin, Dancer Lee Minho | Lee Know, Disguise, Distrust, Enemies to Friends, Fantasy, Hiding in Plain Sight, I don’t know I’m sorry, I had a plan with this thing, Keyword: had, M/M, Masks, Other, Sassy Minho, Swearing but it’s lowkey, Ulterior Motives, calling lee know a cat boy, grandma is my favorite character so far, hidden cities, honestly they both need some chill, hyunjin didn’t either, hyunjin is soft for lee know, hyunjin shows parental tendencies, kind of, mentions of gender based oppression, mentions of magic, mentions of torture, minho did not sign up for this, minho wants to burn the rich, please bear with me, rebellion? maybe, screw gender norms, self indulgent, suprisingly gay later on, the master dude is a questionable, there's crossdressing for disguise, they’re just trying to make it through, thsi mafia/underground thing?, underground movements in underground cities
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-18
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:41:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25975351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aefiltering/pseuds/aefiltering
Summary: If you knew where to find it, it was easily found. If you did not know where to find it, you couldn’t find it. It existed within shadows, smoke, and dreams. It wasn’t at the back of a glitzy bar in downtown Seoul. That was too painfully obvious. Within the backstreets of industrial Seoul, in an old container was your first chance of getting there. No one knew where it was exactly. If you asked anyone, everyone said the same thing. Nowhere. As far as anyone cared, it did not exist. It was a place of the desperate, the unwanted, the greedy, and the determined. Where? You may ask. Where are we going? The City of the Masked.
Relationships: Hwang Hyunjin & Lee Minho | Lee Know, Hwang Hyunjin/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	1. Welcome to the Darkness

**Author's Note:**

> okay hi!! i hope you all like it! A link for visuals will be up soon!

_If you knew where to find it, it was easily found. If you did not know where to find it, you couldn’t find it. It existed within shadows, smoke, and dreams. It wasn’t at the back of a glitzy bar in downtown Seoul. That was too painfully obvious. Within the backstreets of industrial Seoul, in an old container was your first chance of getting there. The Ferrier, they called him. He was the one that got you there. That is if you were so desperate to get there that is. He wouldn’t get you there without nothing. You had to have what he wanted. Money. No one knew where it was exactly. If you asked anyone, everyone said the same thing. Nowhere. As far as anyone cared, it did not exist. It was a place of the desperate, the unwanted, the greedy, and the determined. Where? You may ask. Where are we going? The City of the Masked._

~~~~

_I run this place. I was born here. This was my world, I grew up on the streets of this city. Kitsune they call me. The nine-tailed fox. Well, who am I? I am Hwang Hyunjin, the Master’s most prized dancer. The City of the Masked is different. There are no weapons here. You are the weapon, your only weapon. Here there is no war. If you need something, you needed to know how to get it. That isn’t always that simple. The fighting here is of a different kind. So is the torture. Perhaps I’d better show you?_

>>> Arena of the Champions, late evening

The harsh bass of the song vibrates within my ribs. The lights are strong and penetrating. It’s hot under the mask, but is what identifies and protects me. The crowd cheers savagely as my opponent bows and accepts his defeats. _Typical._ No one has ever come close to even challenge me. I earned my name rightfully and I won’t give it up easily. I look out at the crowd as a challenge.

“Anyone else?”

A man steps up to the front. He’s new. I don’t recognize his colors, red and black. He wears a cat mask.

“And you are?”, I ask, helping him on the platform.

“Lee Know.”

_Lee Know? I’ve heard that name. A rising amateur in the city. Amateurs don’t challenge the rulers, do they? That’s new._

“Well, sir, would you like to take a dance with death?”

“I certainly would.”

“And in what kind of dance would you like to compete with today?”, I ask with feigned kindness. He seems to notice. _Doesn’t this low life know who I am?_ He sneers back at me with equal malice. 

“Traditional fan dance.”

“Poor choice, Cat Boy. You’ll wish you chose differently.”

“We’ll see about that.”

The music starts slowly at first, almost ominous and foreboding. He opens his fan, swiftly. He takes the first moves and at once it seems that my opponent is a worthy one. His fan has a simple drawing, branches of a tree with red flowers. He moves with grace and encircling motions, almost like a wild cat. The music lulls and I begin to dance as well. We dance to the beat, challenging each other continuously. The cat boy doesn’t struggle, in fact, he keeps up. _It’s fun. I haven’t had a good opponent for a while._ But, there is a little something different about him, this cat boy. A spark, something different. _He’s alive. Not in the sense that he’s simply living, he has a light in him._ We continue to dance in tandem, each of us daring the other to make a mistake.

I hear shrill screams from the crowd. _Not screams of joy. Screams of fear._ And then I see it. We both stop dancing. A circle of men in non-descript masks closes in around us. The crowd panics and dissolves into the streets outside. The men walk closer to us. The cat boy backs away, like an animal in a trap. I recognize the characters on their clothes. _The Master’s Guardsmen._

One of my schedulers, a lady in a deer mask, draws me away.

“Sir, it’s best that you stay safe.”

 _Something is not right, it’s not supposed to be this way. I am upset, the cat boy, he doesn’t deserve this, he’s done nothing. I can’t explain._ Yet I comply, I stay behind and watch Lee Know try to run. He knows he’s outnumbered and he knows there's no use to run. _But he does anyway. You know he’s from the outside world. He hasn’t been here long. He has remained human inside, he’s not one of us. I need to get him out of this world before it's too late. He doesn’t belong here._

The guards close in around him and bind his wrists with rope. He resists with all his might, but it’s no use. They drag him away. 

The scheduler tugs on my arm.

“Sir, we need to go.”

“Where are they taking him?”

“Who, sir?”

“The opponent.”

“I don’t know sir. Only the Master might know.”

“Then I wish to see him.”

“The Master himself is unavailable. But if you so desire, you may check the dungeons, sir.”

She leads me away back to the Master’s Castle. 

_The Castle is the towering building in the middle of the city. It’s where the Master and the Prize Dancers live. Who is the Master? No one knows exactly. He is a shadow who wears the Dragon mask. When he selects you, you are in the safest position in the city you can have. No one knows where his guards and servants come from but they serve him loyally or face death. His Prize Dancers are the finest, they make the money and give it to him, and in return, he protects them._

Inside my rooms, I take off my mask and wait for midnight. _I have to find him._ As the night deepens, I put on my mask again and make my way down the stairwell. The dungeons are in the deepest part of the Castle. Right before the last flight of stairs, I hear deep voices from the dungeons.

“How did you get here?”, it roars.

 _No response._ There is the sound of a heavy impact.

“Answer me.”

There is a pause.

“No.”

_Lee Know._


	2. The Man in the Mask

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which, Hyunjin rescues one injured Minho. In which, Hyunjin visits the Master and where we learn of the Trinity. Basically, welcome to another day in the City.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the really late update, I’m quite busy at school. Even though I’m aware I don’t have a reader base yet, I hope you enjoy!

A harsh sound which I recognize as the impact of a bamboo rod on skin resounds across the hallway. 

“He’s unconscious. Let’s go.”

_The bastards._

“Should we take his mask?”

“It’s irrelevant. He won’t come around for days without medical attention.”

The shuffle of footsteps die away from the stairwell. I steal into the entrance and there he is. At least he’s breathing. They never bothered to put him in his cell either. _They’ll pay for this._

“Lee Know.”

_No response._

“Lee Know, wake up.”

_I can’t just drag the cat boy upstairs. One last try._

“Hey, Lee Know, wake up” and I add as an afterthought,“Please.”

 _Well, that settles it. I’m going to carry him._ I put his mask on him and I pick him up bridal style. His head slowly lolls away from my shoulder. _I can’t just take him up to my rooms. I need a ruse._ What if I went to the Master? _Bold of you, Hyunjin._ But, it might be the only thing that works. _You’re mad. Mad enough to try and pull this off._ I bear the cat boy up the stairs. 10 floors. My arms burn from exhaustion. The set of gold gilded double doors mock me. The cat boy sleeps peacefully as if he was at home and not in forgien territory where anyone and everyone may be trying to get him eliminated. I kick the doors as a replacement for knocking. The guards inside open the doors. Inside, there is the Master. _The man in the dragon mask._

“Pleasure to see you, Kitsune. What wind blows you here today? Not an ill wind I hope?”

I resist the urge to roll my eyes because they are the only part of my face that is visible.

“Well sir, I was taking a stroll out of grounds when I came upon this young man. I recognized him as a good dancer in the city. May I take him up to my rooms? He looks hurt, I will call for my nurse.”

There is a slight pause, ever so slight, but in that moment everything shifted. 

“Of course.”

There is a look of a haggard man, tired and desperate. A grain of derision, a slight elevation of the nose and a soft sneer at the lips. _It is clear now. I am the enemy._

I nod softly. _This is war now and as they say, all is fair in love and war._ I take the cat boy, my precious cat boy. I decide not to call the nurse, because now there is no trust. _I will protect him myself._ I put him on the bed and stare at my arms in surprise. _They’re dripping with blood._ Which means he’s bleeding. _Oh god._ I turn the water on in the bath and take his outer robes off. I carry him to the tub and put him in.

“Fuck! What are you doing? Who are you even?”

 _He’s awake._ He holds up his injured arms above the water, as his eyes take in the blood swirling in the soapy water. I put on my parental voice,

“Questions are for later. Let’s get you clean first.”

He eyes me for a few moments before submitting to my care. We work through it slowly cleaning the wounds.

“I’ll get you a clean set of clothes and then we can dress your wounds.”

He nods, far too tired to disagree. I look for a clean set of sleeping clothes. Then, after a great deal of wincing and a couple of painful stitches, I dress his wounds.

“Fox, where’s my mask?”

I look at him, already annoyed.

“One, my name is not ‘Fox’. Two, the least you could say right now is thank you, I’ve just saved your life. And thirdly, you shouldn’t anger the person your life is dependent on. God, Cat Boy, you’re really quite dumb.”

He looks at me, equally annoyed and mocks me back.

“One, my name is not ‘Cat Boy’. Two, you never introduced yourself. And thirdly, it wasn’t your job to save me. You did so because you wanted to. God, Fox Boy, you’re really quite dumb.”

I sigh. _I really put myself in for one, huh?_

“You can call me Hyunjin.”

I take off my mask and place it on the table. He looks at me,

“And I know you from where, exactly?”

“We danced today evening, until the Guardsmen took you away.”

“Oh.”

“You’ll probably recognize my mask. I am the Kitsune.”

“Okay, Hyunjin. What exactly happened?”

“Before I answer that question, tell me who you are.”

“I’m Minho, I go by Lee Know. I’m from the Outside.”

“Like the Outer District or the Outside? You came from beyond the city?”

“Yes.”  
On cue, my stomach grumbles,

“You want food?”

“You have food here? Where do you find food?”

“You mean there’s no food on the streets?”

He looks at me and scoffs incredulously. 

“You’re ridiculous. You’re so privileged. I bet you’ve never struggled a day in your life. Of course there’s no food out there. They’re the streets for a reason.”

“Well, you’re wrong there-”

“You want me to believe the biggest dancer in the city came from humble beginnings. Bullshit. Everyone knows that unless you have connections and money you can’t do anything. Not here in the city or outside.”

He gave me a disgusted look. _Poor boy_.

“Minho, you’re all whacked up in bitterness. I started on those streets. The first time I saw a bed was three years ago. Just because I live in this… gilded cage doesn’t mean this is all I’ve known.”

“Why don’t you leave then?”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

“Have you ever made inquiries for the Trinity?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please leave me a comment or kudos, because I need validation and because it gives me motivation to write! Follow me @aaethering on twitter I’ll be off rest soon!


	3. Headlights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Hyunho go undercover, at a grocery store, but not how you expect it. And then we meet someone new.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey there! thanks for checking me out! I really hope you enjoy!

“Who’s that?”

He smirks.  _ Little bastard. _

“Looks like even the Kitsune doesn’t know everything about this city.”

“Oh shut up and just tell me.”

“The Trinity is the cities’ underground. The three brothers operate, inside, outside, and in between the city. They are the ones who brought me here. I’m not just an amateur dancer. I’m an, how should I put it? An asset?”

“An asset? You’re a spy?”

“Well, no. But in return for bringing me into the city and getting me started with the… culture. I have to bring them information and insight so they could conveniently siphon money off the people.”

“So, this means that this Trinity you speak of can get us out of here?”

“Yeah basically.”

I put the food on the table. He digs in like a hungry cat with not another answer to any of my questions. I eat with him, but not as hungrily. I watch him carefully. I commit those features to memory.

_ The people from the outside. They’re so...different. I must know more. _

“Hey, Minho?”

“Yeah?”

“What is it like? Out there? Outside the city?”

He hesitates for a moment and smiles sadly.

“Not very different. It’s not better out there. Just the means of getting things done are a little… unconventional?”

“What do you mean?”

He looks at me, eyes full of meaning,

“They’ll kill you. They have faster ways of doing that out there.”

_ That’s just straight-up disappointing. I can’t take him out there then. I was hoping to get him somewhere safer than here.  _

“We’re not going to get any sleep tonight, it’s far dangerous here.”

“Why so?”

“They’re going to try to kidnap us at every turn. Even this apartment isn‘t safe. They have keys and they can get in here.”

“So, what’s the plan?”

I scoff,

“We don’t do plans here. There’s one goal and that’s we get the hell out of here. I’ll come back tomorrow morning to get some things. You show me where the Trinity is.”

“What about the injuries? This isn’t a movie, I’m going to need some days to heal, Hyunjin.”

“You can walk, right? That’s enough. I have a motorbike.”

“I can’t walk fast, if they catch me I can’t fight.”

“I’ll carry you then.”

“That’s just plain humiliating.”

“Well suck it up, buttercup. We don’t have time for your ego.”

He groans. I grin at him.

“Okay, cat boy. Let’s go.”

I pick him up and take the fire escape outside the windows.  _ Movie style. Screw you, cat boy, this is a movie. _

“Hyunjin is this  _ really _ necessary? Put me down and I don’t know I can try walking or something?”

I snort.

“Better luck next time, cat boy. I’m not risking you messing with your injuries again.”

He rolls his eyes but still smiles.  _ He’s kind of cute. _

I put him on the back of my motorcycle.  _ Not supposed to have a bike anyway, but when did I ever follow the rules? _

“Where to, Minho?”

“North District.”

So, we drive. We drive through the crowded streets of our district to the quiet, residential north district. He takes me into a small neighborhood store. He smiles at the old lady, who was wearing a bear mask,

“Good evening ma’am. I’m going to go get some vegetables from the back.”

The old lady smiles at him, full of double meaning,

“Go ahead, son.”

I look at Minho,

“We came all the way here for vegetables?”

“No, dumbass, just watch.”

The old lady clears her throat in objection,

“Before you go Minho, come and tell Grandma how you’ve been.”

She signals to a young girl, who comes and takes her place at the register, but not before she giggles at me and waves. I just look down and follow the old lady, while Minho raises his eyebrows at me to poke fun at me. The old lady says,

“So tell Grandma what brings you here?”

So, Minho quickly does some exposition from today evening. She pauses,

“What is your name, young man?”

Minho answers for me,

“Hyunjin. Kitsune.”

“Well, Hyunjin, what do you think of helping me disguise your friend?”

“Sure thing.”

Minho objects almost immediately,

“Wait what?”

“Aw come on cat boy, it’ll be fun.”

He rolls his eyes and we proceed into the basement. The old lady orders us to take off our masks and comes back and puts petticoats in our hands and orders us to change into them. 

“Wait, I thought Minho was the only person we were disguising.”

She laughs,

“Both of you are in trouble now aren’t you? Now, go get dressed, don’t keep me waiting.”

Minho shows me the closets and I put on the petticoat. When we come out the lady has corsets for us.  _ Corsets. _ They’re tight, they choke you, they squeeze your ribs, they're hell on Earth. She puts the female robes over us and surveys the final result. She clicks her tongue clearly, unsatisfied. I give Minho an apprehensive glance, he looks back at me, equally unsure of what to expect. And when she comes back with hair extensions, we know it’s about to happen. She points Minho into a chair. 

“Sit still.”

With that, she leaves the room and brings back the young girl who we saw at the cash register and instructs her to do Minho’s extensions. She giggles and begins. The old lady waves me into a different room and starts on mine. She begins talking to me matter of factly,

“You know Hyunjin,-”

She tilts my head down.

“-you’re lucky to know Minho, he’s a very good boy. I knew him on the outside as a young boy. He’s very smart. And you know, I think he likes you. He’s very shy, and he has seemed to open up to you very fast. You’ll talk to him, eh-”

Her fingers continue to weave through my hair and she tilts my head left. She rattles on and on about Minho. She finally shows me a mirror,

“You look nice.”

“Yes, thank you, ma’am.”

“Call me Grandma.”

She steers me out to where Minho is. The girl is quietly giggling as she finishes the last part of his hair. He stands up and I’m going to be very honest, he looks good. He grins looking at me, revealing his teeth and adorable cheeks. Grandma coughs,

“Off you boys go. Go back to the central district and go to The Maze, the casino. Minho knows what to do from there. Now take care.”

The girl giggles and waves to me. We go upstairs and out the store.

“Dude we can’t ride the bike anymore.”

“Screw gender norms Minho. Let’s go, get on-”

We pause for a second and then I remember his injuries.

“-Oh right.”

I help him on and we drive out of the neighborhood. The engine sputtered and we drove under the cover of clouds as the night grew young. Light pulsed from the central district. From far away, the whine of tires reached Minho’s ear’s.

“Hyunjin, what’s that?”

“What’s what?”

“Those tires? Here? None of the townsfolk own motor vehicles?”

The gleam of headlights cut across the fog like a knife. 

“You saw that right?”

“Yeah.”

“They’re looking for you.”

“No, they’re looking for you, Minho. They don’t know where I am.”

Minho kicks my calf.

“Get off your bike, stupid.”

“We are disguised, aren’t we?”

“Yeah, but your average city female doesn’t own a bike or know how to drive one.”

The headlights cut across our field of vision and three motorbikes turned up the streets. They circled us, as a hawk circles it’s prey. We stop our bike as the group parks around us. An unknown voice says,

“Good evening, ladies. What keeps you out, on this cold night?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you enjoyed this! thank you for bearing with me! if you liked this please consider checking out my other works, following me on twitter @aaethering, dropping a comment for me or simply giving me a kudos! anything works! thanks for checking me out!

**Author's Note:**

> okay please leave kudos and comments if you can! it'll encourage me! follow me on twitter @aefiltering for more when I get off rest!


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